The Dalit student who died by suicide at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay in February had told his mother about caste discrimination in the college, says a chargesheet filed by the police, PTI reported on Wednesday.
Darshan Solanki, 18, was a first-year student in the Bachelor in Technology (Chemical) course at the institution. He was found dead near his hostel building on February 12. In a note, Solanki had named one of his batchmates, who was subsequently arrested on charges of abetment of suicide.
In a chargesheet filed before a special court on Tuesday, the police said that Solanki told his mother that the behaviour of his fellow students changed after they came to know about his caste. Solanki had also told his family that some students taunted him saying that he was receiving free education.
Also read: The Indian classroom is a site of routine humiliation for Dalit students
While Solanki’s family have maintained their claim of caste discrimination at the institute, an inquiry committee set up by IIT-Bombay had dismissed it as the possible reason behind Solanki’s suicide and hinted at “deteriorating academic performance” as the probable cause.
In Tuesday’s chargesheet, the police said that their investigation concluded that Solanki’s poor academic record and a threat from his batchmate Arman Khatri were the reasons behind the suicide, reported The Indian Express.
The police also said that they found an Instagram chat that Solanki had with a YouTuber running a spiritual channel. The 19-year-old had Solanki had expressed concern over his poor marks and lack of interest in studies to him.
“I am in a difficult situation as I am not able to study and get poor marks due to which I go into depression,” Solanki had told the Youtuber. “Please provide a solution to this problem.”
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